The U.S. trade deficit rose to its highest level since October 2008 as higher oil prices offset continued increases in exports, the Commerce Department said.

Imports of goods and services rose 3.1 percent to $188.3 billion in March while exports rose 3.2 percent to $147.9 billion, resulting in a trade deficit of $40.4 billion, up from $39.4 billion in February.

The increase in imports was led by a 25.5 percent jump in the value of crude oil shipments, reflecting higher volume and prices. Petroleum added $1.8 billion to the March trade deficit. The goods deficit excluding petroleum was little changed.

The deficit was close to what had been expected by economists, who said it reflected rising demand in a recovering U.S. economy. “It showed sharp increases in both export and import volumes, indicating that the world trade recovery still has plenty of momentum,” said Nigel Gault, chief U.S. economist at IHS Global Insight.

So far this year, the U.S. deficit is running at an annual rate of $467.2 billion, 23.4 percent higher than last year’s imbalance of $378.6 billion.

Source: JOC